Brotherly Love

If you have ever enjoyed singing or listening to harmony in a rock song then you can thank the Everly Brothers who not only directly influenced the Beatles’ sound but also helped bring rock, R&B, and country music together. Born in the Midwest and raised in a country music singing family group, Phil and Don Everly could do it all musically, yet after their late ‘50s and early ‘60s peak the brothers just never seemed to be able to adapt and find a place in the modern musical landscape they helped create. After the passing of Phil Everly in 2014, Paul Simon said: “Phil and Don were the most beautiful sounding duo I ever heard. Both voices pristine and soulful. The Everlys were there at the crossroads of country and R&B. They witnessed and were part of the birth of rock and roll.”

In the early ‘90s I was traveling through the South of France listening to Sebadoh and Dinosaur Jr. on my Walkman when one day I wandered into a little shop and purchased an Everly Brothers cassette tape (since I had read in a fanzine somewhere that the Everly Brothers had influenced Sebadoh who at the time were my favorite band). To this day, I’m an Everly Brothers fan although when it comes to their vast catalogue of music I’m more interested in their darker, sadder stuff than the more popular songs like “Bye Bye Love” or “Wake Up Little Susie”. To me, “Gone, Gone, Gone” sounds like proto-pop punk and rocks harder than any Green Day song; while the Everlys’ cover of Bob Dylan’s “Abandoned Love” is just so beautifully weird and touching. Here are some of my favorite Everly Brothers songs. Enjoy!

01. The Everly Brothers – “Gone, Gone, Gone” (1964)

02. The Everly Brothers – “Bowling Green” (1967)

03. The Everly Brothers – “When Will I Be Loved” (1960)

04. The Everly Brothers – “Mama Tried” (1968)

05. The Everly Brothers – “Let It Be Me” (1960)

06. The Everly Brothers – “Down in the Willow Garden” (1958)

07. The Everly Brothers – “Problems” (1958)

08. The Everly Brothers – “(Till) I Kissed You” (1959) 

09. The Everly Brothers – “All I Have to Do Is Dream” (1958)

10. The Everly Brothers – “Abandoned Love” (1985)

Listen to the playlist on Spotify...